title: Idiopathic central sleep apnoea syndrome treated with zolpidem.
abstract: We report the case of a 47-year-old man with idiopathic central sleep apnoeas recurring during wake-sleep transitions at night or at diurnal naps. Symptoms associated with central apnoeas were sudden awakening with shortness of breath, sleep fragmentation and daytime tiredness. Following the failure of CPAP and BiPAP, we treated the patient with zolpidem which reduced central apnoea events, improved sleep and eliminated the patient's nocturnal disturbing symptoms. Beneficial effects were still present after two years of treatment. Our case demonstrates that zolpidem may be beneficial in the long term treatment of idiopathic central sleep apnoea syndrome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurological Sciences, University of Bologna, Via U. Foscolo 7, Bologna, Italy. daniela.grimaldi@unibo.it
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Grimaldi
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Provini
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vetrugno
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Antelmi
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Donadio
authors.forename: Rocco
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Liguori
authors.forename: Giulia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pierangeli
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cortelli
authors.forename: Pasquale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Montagna
mesh_terms: D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography / Q000379:methods; D011725:Pyridines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D020182:Sleep Apnea, Central / Q000188:drug therapy*; D000077334:Zolpidem
chemical_list: D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives; D011725:Pyridines; D000077334:Zolpidem